---
title: "Diving in the British Virgin Islands: Start at the Rhone"
url: https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/things-to-do/diving
description: "Diving in the British Virgin Islands is a boat day: the Rhone wreck, the Indians and the Dogs, with the dive shops' rates and the park's mooring rules."
updated: 2026-10-21
source: https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/things-to-do/diving
---

[British Virgin Islands](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi) · Things to do · British Virgin Islands

# Scuba diving in the British Virgin Islands

Diving in the British Virgin Islands is a boat day, and most dive weeks here start in the same place: the wreck of the RMS Rhone off Salt Island, a mail steamer lost to a hurricane in 1867. Around it sit reefs, canyons and pinnacles for every level. The catch is that the finest sites are the exposed ones.

Written by Virgin Islands Villas·Updated Oct 2026

## Why BVI diving starts at a dive shop dock

Because nothing here is a shore dive worth the name. The sites are short runs across the Sir Francis Drake Channel, reached by a dive shop's boat, a dive boat that meets your yacht, or your own charter on a park buoy.

Sheltered sites inside the channel suit a newly certified diver; the outer Dogs and the Chikuzen are for experienced divers on a calm day, and the shops pick each morning's sites by the weather.

## The RMS Rhone, the wreck most divers come for

The Rhone was a Royal Mail steamer, 310 feet long, that broke apart off Salt Island in a hurricane in 1867, and more than 120 people died, by our read of the accounts. The National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands calls it the most popular dive site in the BVI. It lies in two main parts in about 20 to 80 feet of water, the bow, boilers, engines and propeller still there under coral and sponge.

It takes two dives. Dive BVI's plan is the bow first, at about 75 feet, then the midsection at about 70 after the surface interval. Sunchaser Scuba gives the bow as 55 to 85 feet and the stern as 15 to 80, which is why a snorkeler on the same boat can see the stern from the surface.

## BVI dive sites, and how far each is from the dock

Distances are straight lines on the map from the dive shops' docks and Road Town, measured October 21, 2026; a boat goes around the headlands, so the run is longer.

| Site | What it is | Depth, per the operators | From the dock, straight line |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| RMS Rhone, Salt Island | The 1867 wreck, in two parts | 20 to 80 feet | 7.3 nm from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour, 5.9 from Scrub Island, 5.6 from Road Town |
| Painted Walls, Dead Chest | Colorful canyons, inside the Rhone park | Shallow, by our read | 8.6 nm from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour, 6.8 from Scrub Island |
| The Indians, off Norman Island | Rock pinnacles breaking the surface, a dive and a snorkel | About 50 feet at the deepest, by our read | 5.6 nm from Road Town, 10.2 from Scrub Island, 13.0 from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour |
| Alice in Wonderland, Ginger Island | Spur and groove reef and big coral heads | 40 to 70 feet (Dive BVI), 40 to 85 (Sunchaser) | 4.2 nm from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour, 5.2 from Scrub Island |
| The Chimney and Coral Gardens, Great Dog | An arch and canyon; a reef with three airplanes recreated as sharks, an underwater art site | 30 to 45 feet (the Chimney), 30 to 50 (Coral Gardens) | 2.5 nm from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour, 3.7 from Scrub Island, 5.7 from the Bitter End |
| The Chikuzen | A 246-foot refrigeration ship sunk in open water | 75 feet, advanced | Dive BVI puts it 12 miles northwest of Virgin Gorda; not measured |

The Trust lists Painted Walls, Blonde Rock and Rhone Reef inside the same park as the wreck, so the Rhone and Painted Walls pair well on one morning. Dive BVI calls Ginger Steps, on the same island, some of the healthiest coral in the BVI.

## BVI dive shops on Virgin Gorda and Scrub Island

Dive BVI has run dives from Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour in Spanish Town since 1975 and has a second shop at Scrub Island Resort, off Tortola's east end. Its Scrub Island shop was closed for seasonal maintenance in October 2026, with trips running from Virgin Gorda; check with Dive BVI before you plan on it. Morning trips leave Yacht Harbour at 8:30 am. For a sailing week, its Rendezvous Diving brings the boat and gear to your mooring.

Sunchaser Scuba is at the Bitter End Yacht Club on North Sound, and dives the Dog Islands, Ginger and Cooper Islands and the Rhone.

| Trip, as of October 2026 | Dive BVI | Sunchaser Scuba |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Two-tank morning | $140 | $175 with its gear, $160 without |
| One-tank afternoon | $110 | $125 |
| Snorkeler or rider | $55 | $75 |
| Try Scuba, one day | $200, 10 and over | $190, 10 and up; $135 for 8 and 9 |

Both say their rates are subject to change. Dive BVI's rates include $10 a day per diver or snorkeler for the National Parks fee and the cruising permit. From Tortola without a boat, the [BVI ferry page](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/ferry) has the crossings to Spanish Town, and [BVI boat charters](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/experiences/boat-charters) lists captains for a private group.

## Never dived? A resort course, or the Rhone from above

A first dive needs no certificate. Both shops run a one-day resort course for anyone 10 or over: a short session on the theory, the skills in shallow water, then a shallow dive on a reef with an instructor beside you. Dive BVI asks for a medical questionnaire before it confirms.

A non-diver can still see the Rhone. Dive BVI runs a one-tank afternoon trip that visits the wreck's shallower parts so snorkelers can swim over it, on Saturdays by its dive-sites page and on other days with advance notice; its trips leave with a minimum of 4 divers or 6 snorkelers. A rider's seat on either shop's boats costs $55 to $75 as of October 2026. The boulders at [The Baths](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/beaches/the-baths) make the other half of most boat days on this side of the channel.

## The National Parks Trust's rules for dive boats

Every park buoy is the National Parks Trust's, and using one needs a National Parks Mooring Permit, which the Trust says is required by law. A dive boat carries one; a charter yacht buys it from its charter company, a dive shop or the Trust's Road Town office, and a foreign vessel at Customs on entry.

The buoys are colored by use: white for diving only, orange for day stops without diving, yellow for commercial vessels, blue for dinghies. Every one carries a 90-minute limit, first come, first served, and none may be used overnight. Inside the Rhone park, anchoring and fishing are prohibited outright.

## Swell, current and the exposed BVI sites

The tradeoff for the BVI's best diving is weather. The sites with the most fish are the ones open to the ocean: Dive BVI warns of regular swells of 3 to 5 feet over the Chikuzen and says Bronco Billy, in the Dog Islands, can be impossible in winter; Sunchaser Scuba says Alice in Wonderland can be very rolly on the surface. Dive BVI says the current at Shark Point, off Scrub Island, often runs away from the boat.

In winter, Sunchaser Scuba sends divers to Cooper Island for shelter from the north swell. Anyone set on the Chikuzen or the outer Dogs should leave two or three mornings free.

## BVI water temperature for scuba, month by month

The sea in the channel never runs cold. Our climate file gives the mean daily high of the sea surface off Road Town for each month, November 2022 to 2025.

| Months | Sea surface |
| --- | --- |
| February | 80°F |
| January, March, April | 81°F |
| December | 82°F |
| May | 83°F |
| June, November | 84°F |
| July, August | 85°F |
| September, October | 86°F |

Dive BVI includes a shorty wetsuit in its dive packages, which is enough most of the year. The warmest water falls in the hurricane window, August to October.

## Flying home after a dive in the BVI

Wait at least 12 hours after a single dive and 18 after several before you fly, per the CDC, counting to take-off from Tortola's airport on Beef Island or from St. Thomas rather than to the ferry. In an emergency call 911, or Virgin Islands Search and Rescue on 767 at sea, per the UK government's travel advice.

Questions people ask

### Is diving good in the British Virgin Islands?

Yes, for wrecks and reefs a short boat run apart. The RMS Rhone off Salt Island, sunk in 1867, is the territory's most popular dive by the National Parks Trust's account, and the Indians, Painted Walls, Alice in Wonderland and the Dog Islands are each a morning's run from the dive shops.

### How much does scuba diving cost in the BVI?

A two-tank morning costs $140 with Dive BVI and $175 with Sunchaser Scuba, with its gear, as of October 2026; a one-tank afternoon is $110 to $125, and a snorkeler riding along pays $55 to $75. Dive BVI's rates include $10 a day for the National Parks fee and the cruising permit. Both shops say their rates are subject to change.

### Can you scuba dive in the BVI without being certified?

Yes, on a resort course. Dive BVI's one-day Try Scuba costs $200 (two people minimum, or $300 alone) and Sunchaser Scuba's $190, both for anyone 10 and over as of October 2026: a short lesson, skills in shallow water, then a shallow reef dive with an instructor. Every other trip asks for a certification card.

### Where do you go diving from Tortola?

Most often to the Rhone and the Indians. Road Town is 5.6 nautical miles in a straight line from both, by our measurement on the map. The two dive shops that publish their rates sail from Virgin Gorda and from Scrub Island, off Tortola's east end, and Dive BVI will meet a charter boat at its mooring (check that Scrub Island's shop is open).

At a glance · checked Oct 2026

**Getting to the sites**

By boat only

Every site on this page is reached by a dive boat or a private charter; Dive BVI counts over 60 sites with dive moorings in the BVI (checked 2026-10-21).

**The RMS Rhone**

Two main parts in about 20 to 80 feet of water, Lee Bay, Salt Island

Sunk by a hurricane in 1867; inside the Dead Chest and RMS Rhone marine park, established 1980, where anchoring and fishing are prohibited (National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands, checked 2026-10-21).

**Permit**

A National Parks Mooring Permit, required by law to use the park buoys

Sold by charter companies, dive shops and the Trust's Road Town office; white buoys are for diving only, with a 90-minute limit on every mooring (National Parks Trust, checked 2026-10-21).

**A two-tank morning**

$140 to $175 a diver

Dive BVI $140, Sunchaser Scuba $175 with its equipment or $160 without, as of October 2026; both say their rates are subject to change.

**Not certified**

A one-day resort course, 10 and over

Dive BVI's Try Scuba $200 (two people minimum, or $300 alone) and Sunchaser Scuba's $190, as of October 2026. Every other dive trip asks for a certification card.

**Sea temperature**

80°F in February to 86°F in September and October

Sir Francis Drake Channel off Road Town, the monthly mean of daily highs, November 2022 to 2025, from our climate file.

**Flying after diving**

12 hours after one dive, 18 after several

Minimum surface intervals for no-decompression dives, per the CDC; 24 to 48 hours after a dive with decompression stops (checked 2026-10-21).

**In an emergency**

911, and VISAR on 767 at sea

The UK government's travel advice for the territory lists both (checked 2026-10-21). Divers Alert Network's 24-hour line is +1-919-684-9111, per the CDC.

More on British Virgin Islands

- [Things to do in Tortola and the British Virgin Islands](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/things-to-do)

- [Soggy Dollar Bar](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/things-to-do/soggy-dollar-bar)

- [BVI snorkeling, by boat and from the beach](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/things-to-do/snorkeling)

- [A seven-day British Virgin Islands sailing itinerary](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/guides/bvi-sailing-itinerary)

- [Best time of year to sail the BVI](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/guides/best-time-to-sail-bvi)

- [British Virgin Islands family vacation](https://virginislandvilla.com/bvi/guides/bvi-family-vacation)

Facts checked against [the National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands](https://www.bvinpt.org/dead-chest-rms-marine-park-info), [Dive BVI](https://divebvi.com/rates/), [Sunchaser Scuba](https://sunchaserscuba.com/rates), [the CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/environmental-hazards-risks/scuba-diving-decompression-illness-and-other-dive-related-injuries.html) and [the UK government's travel advice](https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/british-virgin-islands/getting-help). Checked October 2026.